Youth
by Louna Louise
Summary: Rachel quickly learns that fairytales are far from magical when she's kidnapped and ends up on what seems a desert island.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone! I'm so excited to publish my very first fanfiction here! I've been obsessed with Peter Pan lately as he has been a very important part of my childhood. I also have to admit the way Once Upon a Time rewrote his personality is absolutely fascinating. It made me want to write again hihihi!**

 **First of all I'd like to say English is not my first language (I'm French) but I really am trying my hardest to make everything coherent and nice to read. So please tell me if you find any mistake (grammar or else).**

 **Second, don't be scared to leave a review! But if you don't feel like it, obviously don't, we're here to enjoy ourselves, aren't we?**

 **Third of all, this story is going to be quite dark as I will totally crush the fairytale like version of Neverland and its inhabitants, based upon the (amazing) season 3 of the show. If you're into that stuff, read on!**

 **Thank you for clicking on my story! I'll try my best not to disappoint you!**

"Will you tell me a story ?"

Rachel smiled.

"Make it adventurous! I want pirates and heroic fights!"

She sat by her little brother on the carpet.

"It's the story of a boy, the very unique and one boy who would never grow up."

"Peter Pan!"

"Exactly! You're a clever one Ben. On that night, Peter was feeling bored and so, he decided to take a walk. The air, as always when he was around, was cool, just chilly enough to make you want to go on marvellous adventures and never return. Peter climbed the highest mountain of Neverland and once he reached the top, he admired his island."

"Why didn't he just fly there, Rachel ?"

"Well you see, once every year Peter lost his ability of wind rider."

"Why's that? Isn't it dangerous to climb a mountain then?"

"It is indeed quite dangerous but because he couldn't fly on that particular night, Peter always felt the need to go up somewhere high, never minding the dangers. But he was never afraid of falling. Also, the reason Peter had to keep feet on land was that for one night every year, long before he even came to Neverland, the forest and its inhabitants would tear each other apart. On that one night, the redskins would set the forest on fire, and the forest would fight back with poison gas from its plants and send off its cruelest fighters to rip the Natives's throats with their claws. Neverland would become absolute madness."

"What about the fairies?"

"The fairies being magical creatures were spared the curse and would hide and lock themselves in a dark and cold cave until sunrise. This is mainly why they later all suffered from claustrophobia. Then, the next morning, they would fly up upon their homeland and treat the warrior's wounds. But one day, the fairy Queen understood that nothing could end the nightmare they had been enduring since the island was born and so, out of despair, she sent her best fighter to our world in search of a solution. Tinkerbell looked over Earth for days and days, trying to see a spark of magic in someone's eyes that would tell her she could talk to them."

"Because if you don't believe in fairies, you can never see them wandering about!"

"That's exactly it Ben, good job! After trying to make herself seen by adults, she gave up on them and tried talking to children. She almost succeeded. But by the time she convinced them to help her world out, their parents would come in to teach them to grow up. So she left, fearing she would never make it back in time to save her people. But one day, after another failure, she adventured in a park and saw a young boy sleeping on the grass, under a tree. As it was nightfall, Tinkerbell approached him. The boy could have been twelve and had wet messy hair, probably due to the rain that had fallen earlier in the evening. Tinkerbell landed next to him, trying not to wake him up but the boy suddenly sat up, breathing heavily, eyes wide open. The fairy understood he had had a bad dream. Because it was dark, the dark blond boy saw her almost immediately and stared at her in shock."

"Mama told me fairies glow because they're the purest of all living creatures!"

"Well mama's right! Tinkerbell was so relieved to have found someone finally willing to listen to her she explained everything to him in no time! Immediately after she'd finished, Peter stood up and said « I'll help everyone! » making Tinkerbell's heart jump in her chest. They immediately set off to Neverland, and the fairy quickly understood she had found the right boy because he had learnt flying very fast. He was a natural."

"But Rachel, why was he sleeping outside? It must have been very cold!"

"Peter had run away from his parents who had started his education on that same day. He simply did not feel the need to grow up and having to wear a tight tie around his neck, pretending to like people he hated in order to live. Where would all the fun be? So when Tinkerbell asked for his help, he decided there was no other place he could be safer from the police's investigation. He was a clever boy indeed. The pair flew until morning, and landed safely onshore where a crowd of flying fairies was waiting for them. Queen Hilda flew to meet them and agreed the boy named Peter definitely had something in him that made him perfect to receive the Gift. She approached him, so near Peter had to squint. Placing her tiny hand on the top of his nose, she said a few sentences in fairy language, that the blond boy later learnt and gave a name to. When she finally ended her ode, Queen Hilda led Peter only to a cave called Echo Cave. There, she made him swim in a pool of cold water she said was magical. When the boy walked out of it he felt a bit lightheaded and struggled to walk straight back to the fairy."

"Wasn't he freezing?"

"Of course he was, but braveness being a massive part of his personality there was no way he would have admitted it. He looked deep into Hilda's eyes and announced : « The name's Pan. » The Queen gave him her blessing. Peter Pan had just been born, an eternal and powerful child, owning the island of dreams for the rest of forever."

"What's next?!"

Rachel smirked at her ten year old brother.

"Next is you going to bed, it's past bedtime." she announced, provoking an angry trait on the face of her beloved sibling.

"I'm not sleepy at all! I want to know more about Peter Pan!"

"And if mama and papa find you still awake when they get back home they will never allow me to tell you stories again."

Ben looked pensive.

"Are you offering a deal ?"

"I wouldn't know, Captain Ben, am I?"

"What I know is that you two are going to be grounded until the end of the year if you do not go to bed in the next second." suddenly said their mom's voice out of nowhere.

The two children looked behind their backs just to find Lucy, their mother, laying against the wall. She had probably been there for a few minutes already and was smiling at them, with the smile a loving and caring mother only could give.

"Hurry up and go back to your room Rachel. Tomorrow's a very important day and you need to be fully rested."

"You're right mama. Goodnight. "

The sixteen year old girl went back to her bedroom, her almost adult mind still running Neverland, following Peter on his adventures.

 _Growing up indeed is no fun_ , she thought.

/

Rachel suddenly woke up, rapidly breathing. She had heard a loud noise near her. With wariness, she took a look around her but saw nothing... Until she spotted her old doll house broken on the floor across her room.

"Oh no... " she cried, a tear falling from her left eye.

She got out of bed and went to the window to try to save what could be spared, but she soon realised the house was completely crushed. The bright moonlight allowed her to see very clearly. Rachel stayed sat there, mourning the loss of the last remaining souvenir from her childhood. Oh how many times had she opened that house and played with the dolls, how many times had she travelled to breathtaking places with her characters, how many fights had she won? All of it was now down, unfixable on the harsh floor.

Something moved behind her. Rachel turned around but once again saw nothing. _Who could possibly be hidden in an enlightened room?_ she wondered. Soon enough, as everything was staying still, Rachel shook her head and picked the remains of her house to sort them. Maybe would she have the chance to fix everything up later. This is when she realised one of the dolls was missing. The girl frowned. It had been her favourite since she was little, the doll she had made based upon the young boy of her stories. Where could it be? She searched for it all over her room, messing with her things like never before but she just couldn't find it. It had disappeared. She sighed out of despair. But then, she felt something touch her right shoulder. The girl jumped and would have screamed if a cold hand hadn't shut her up. She couldn't see her opponent, she couldn't even feel their breath behind her head. It was as if only a hand blocking her from screaming was there. Terrifying. A billion black dots started dancing before her eyes. Rachel tried to yell out for help. Everything went black.

 **It's me again! Thanks for reading until the end. I unfortunately am unable to give you an update schedule as I don't know it either yet. However, I can promise I'll update as soon as I write a chapter, which will be quite often for the rest of the week since I'm still on holiday! I'll get back to you next Monday or Tuesday for more details. See ya!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again! I have to say I impress myself at how quickly I uploaded** ** _Youth_** **but I'm so excited about it I just couldn't wait any longer!**

 **Anywayyyy! I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much as I do. Thanks again for reading me!**

She coughed. Twice. Expelling the sand from her dry mouth. She tried to open her eyes but could only see shadows surrounding her. She heard the soft sound of waves breaking on land, a few steps away from where she was laying, unable to move. She coughed again, tried to remove the annoying grains with her fingers, attempted to spit it out, but despite her efforts, she could feel them grit in between her teeth.

Rachel was shaking. She was cold, she was scared, she was alone, but more importantly, she was not in her bedroom at all. She could clearly remember being attacked, but none of it made sense. Who, how, why? So many questions pirouetting in her head but only darkness for an answer. Where was she? Geographically speaking she couldn't have known, but she obviously was on a beach, and it was nighttime, explaining the hundreds of shadows all around her.

A bird flew past the moon, making her yelp of surprise. Her heartbeat gone crazy, Rachel sat down to try to cool it down. _There's absolutely no use of freaking out_ , she told herself. _Calm down youngster, it'll be over soon_. But she just couldn't convince herself she was having some nightmare of a sort. Everything felt too real. From the cold bite of the wind to the touch of the sand under her frail body. Her clothes, mostly made of cotton, did not do much to protect her, and so she decided she could not stay there, waiting for something to happen.

She headed in direction of the nearby forest, hoping to find firewood. She walked for what seemed like hours but nothing came onto her view. Her head still pounding she sat on a dead tree to examine the situation she was in but couldn't find any more answers than before. She figured the situation had even worsen since she was now lost in an unknown forest. She looked back. Maybe she should have stayed near the water. She shook her head, intensifying her headache. She was not thinking straight of course, she would have died back there. Her strength slowly leaving her body, she slipped to the ground and put her arms around her legs, trying to warm herself up a little, which obviously did not work. The night was cold as a winter blade, she almost felt it cut her through.

A dry branch cracked somewhere. She blenched out of terror and thought of running away, but because she was so weak she stayed in her hunched position in hope to stay hidden. Which turned out to be completely useless.

"My my... " said a joyful voice right before her. "Isn't it the new recruit that had me run all around the island to search for. "

Rachel refused to look up. "It's a dream, it can only be a dream." she repeated to herself.

The boy burst out laughing. At her, she presumed, but she couldn't face the fact she had fallen in such madness. Once again, what was happening to her?

"My dear, " laughed the voice "this is no dream. This is just about to be your worst nightmare. Now get up. " he ordered.

But even if she had wanted it, Rachel could not have obeyed, frightened and weak as she had become. The boy figured that out quite quickly.

" Well, if you're not a pain already. "

And with that said, he threw her on his shoulder and walked away, like she was no weight.

The boy walked a long time, and Rachel was not feeling so well. She had almost thrown up a couple of times, and quickly fainted at some point, but it did not stop him. He just kept on walking to some mysterious destination, never hesitating on the path he had to take. He had obviously been living in this forest for quite some time.

Rachel could not see much, except for his back, his heels and the dirt he left behind. With her headache getting worst as time flew by, she decided to let go, and went loose against the boy's shoulder. She could almost hear him mock her for that, although he did not make a sound. He was one with the shadows : silent, quick and efficient.

Eventually, Rachel heard the sound of a drum getting closer, and as the boy kept on walking, she started to hear human voices savagely singing in some ethnic language. The music brought back the pounding in her head, loud as never before. Once again, her mind fell into oblivion.

/

" Have I not told you to get up, girl? " she heard a voice say right before extremely cold water was shot to her face. She sat up straight, craving for air. Her action gave rise to laughs around her. She observed her surroundings and was quick to find she was surrounded by people wearing dark green capes. Some of them even wore large hoods.

" I won't command you three times. " said the same voice from before. Its statement provoked a chanting from the people around her.

" Get up. Get up. Get up. Get up. "

Rachel had no choice. She got rid of the water streaming down her face and tried to get on her feet. She almost succeeded but lost balance and fell right into someone's arms. The group laughed again, mocking her. The arms she had fallen into pushed her away, sending her against someone else that did the same. From arms to arms, Rachel couldn't control her body and ended up on the ground again, dizzy. Some of them shook their heads and finally walked away. Only one boy stayed back, the one that had carried her. How she knew it she couldn't say herself. Maybe was it the way he looked pissed at her.

" You're making a fool of yourself, girl. You've already tired the boys. That's a record if I may. "

He paused.

"Get up. You're late."

Rachel tried to speak but her words got stuck in her throat. She closed her mouth and tried to walk again. This time she succeeded and followed the dark figure through what seemed a camp. What was the meaning of all this?

The strange boy led her further into the woods, apart from camp and suddenly stopped, surprising her greatly enough for her to bump into him. He growled.

"Learn to control yourself, girl, or you won't last long around here."

She opened her mouth again but didn't find anything clever to say. He turned around, observing her with piercing eyes that shone with the moonlight. _That's one cold glare_ , she caught herself thinking. Why was she not freaking out ?

"At least you're quiet." he approved. "You are to listen to our rules, and behave according to them. Do I make myself clear?"

The glare got closer. Rachel stepped back. Now was a perfect time to freak out. She gritted her teeth.

"Rule number one." the boy started "You do not make any attempt whatsoever of escaping camp. You are to leave only under direct orders. Rule number two : you are to call us by the name we will introduce ourselves with. No exception. Rule number three : you do not lie. Ever."

"Or else what ?" Rachel finally spoke, apparently amusing him. She caught his white teeth breaking into a hysterical smile.

" I was hoping you'd ask." And he pushed her in front of him.

She almost fell from the cliff that had appeared in a second before her eyes but the boy caught the fabric of her shirt and brought her back to safety. Rachel took a minute to find her breath. Had he not had such great reflexes she would have ended at the bottom of that cliff. Thanks goodness she was alive !

"Now that you know what you are risking by breaking the rules, you may mingle with the others. Or at least try."

He then casually walked away, like if he had not just risked her life, and disappeared, leaving her alone in the dark.

It took her a moment to come to her senses. She needed answers to her questions. She walked back to camp, just to see the boys had made a gigantic fire, illuminating the night. She stayed in the shadows, unsure of what should her next move be. She couldn't just burst in there and act bossy like. After some time, movement brought her out of her cogitation. She looked up and saw the boys take their long coats off and gather around the fire. They started dancing around it while someone she could not see started playing drums again, in an infernal rhythm. This is when she heard it, the lovely sound of a pipe, coming from what seemed everywhere and nowhere at the same time. The music messed up with her mind, making her want to dance with the others and have fun, but she didn't move. The pipe got closer, and as the sound got louder, bigger was her urge to join the group. But suddenly the music stopped, leaving the crazy beat continue alone. No one seemed bothered by it.

A boy she did not know walked out of the shadows on her right, lowering the instrument he had apparently just played. _So he was the piper_ , Rachel understood.

At first he did not seem to see her, although she was just inches away from him. The girl did not dare to move. She didn't like the way he was looking at the others, with satisfaction in his eyes. She held her breath. The boy turned his head to look at her and smiled, but his smirk only darkened his already devilish face. Rachel definitely chose to fear him.

"So you're the rookie... " he began, almost laughing at himself for some reason.

 _Madman_ , she thought.

He then looked straight into her eyes, immobilising her with his look only. He smirked again.

"Be welcomed to Neverland."


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello again! I'm back hehe and with some action although the story is still beginning, so don't expect plot twists just yet, I like to take my time so the universe the characters are evolving in can be fully introduced. But it will come sooner than you'd think.**

 **Hope you enjoy it!**

The boy walked to the fire camp and joined the others. As the rest of them, he wore a deep green coat, mixing with the night shadows. He looked exactly like the others but Rachel knew better. The way he walked, the way he looked over the others, his confident smile were all hints she could not refuse to see: he could be no one but their leader. The young lady shivered. The cold wind still got through her shirt, freezing her. She thought of her kidnapper's words about mingling with the others but how could she? They were nothing but bandits participating in some awkward dancings and singings. Rachel was no fool, but they were bandits with warm coats and a fire. She couldn't just freeze to death in some unknown place: she had to survive until her parents came to get her back.

Bravely, she stepped in the camp and sat down on a rock close enough to feel the heat and dry her clothes but far enough to be apart from them. Then she waited. A very long time, but no one simply cared enough to spot her there, or when they did, they laughed at her face and kept on dancing. They had not forgotten the previous scene of her falling to her knees no matter how hard she tried to get up, and they apparently weren't in the mood to get to know her, or why she had ended up in this place. Rachel felt as if she was the ugly duckling. She hadn't seen no girl since her arrival, and she was put aside by the rest of the group for no apparent reason other than what had happened before.

"Good evening. May I sit with you? " asked a boy appearing from behind her, making her blench.

She looked at him closely, searching any sign of mockery. She finally nodded, accepting his presence near her. _That was unexpected_ , she thought to herself. _But then, what was expected to happen today...?_

"So... Um... You're the new recruit." the boy started after a few seconds of silence from her. She looked at him again. He was nearly her age, had deep grey eyes and wild black hair, and was apparently even more uncomfortable than her. She chose to answer him: she needed an ally in this adventure.

"I suppose I am. Who are you?" she answered, making him smile from ear to ear. _Weird_.

"My name is Albert, but they call me Al. What's yours?"

"I'm... Brenda. It means "sword" in Old Norse." she lied. She had learnt by going out quite often that giving away her real name to a stranger was never a good idea.

"Nice! I wish my name had a cool meaning too."

His statement made her smile. Of course his name had a meaning, like each and every one of them. «Names have power» an old woman had told her one day while she was asking for directions. «You do not choose your name when you are born, but know you can change it if it pleases you later on.» She had googled the meaning of her name on that night, and had been disappointed to find out "Rachel" actually meant "ewe" in Hebrew. She had then forgotten about it until her own grandmother started giving her lessons of languages such as Ancient Greek and Latin. She had discovered that every single word had a story on its own and she had thought this absolutely amazing, creating a never ending passion for it.

"You know, "Albert" is of German origins. It was originally "Adalbert" meaning "noble and bright". A name suited for kings."

The grey-eyed-boy's smile grew even wider, like she had just announced the success of Apollo 11.

"That's great to hear!" he exclaimed.

"Indeed." Rachel admitted. "But you didn't exactly answer my question: who are you?"

"Oh." he realised. "I was the newbie until you arrived. So thank you for coming because I was starting to believe I was crazy around here. Everyone seems so..."

"Indifferent?"He stared at her, blinking twice.

"Yeah... That's the word. Indifferent."

Rachel sighed. Was this boy even sincere? She stared at him.

"You know, if we keep staring at each other the situation is gonna turn _really_ awkward." he said, shaking her out of her thoughts. She managed a smile.

"Of course. What can you tell me about this place ? How long have you been here ?" she asked.

He seemed to hesitate and looked across the fire camp, at something she couldn't see.

"You know what? I have to go, I'm sorry. Maybe some other time."

"Wait!"

But Al had already faded in the group, and she couldn't recognise him among all the dancing faces. What was wrong with this place ? People kept talking to her and then disappearing. At least the last two hadn't threatened her, but if she was honest with herself, it was just as if. Once more, none of it made sense, and Rachel started to really be bothered by it.

She changed her sitting position and placed her hands on the stone next to her. She surprisingly felt her right hand touch soft fabric. Curious, she looked down only to see a folded coat under her fingers she was sure was not there when she had sat down. She looked around her but no one seemed occupied by her wellbeing. She looked at the coat again. She was not cold anymore but the fire was going out minute by minute. She took the cloth and tried it on. It suited her impeccably, like it had been made for her, which of course was not the case. She looked at the dancing boys again and wondered which one of them was the stylist. The thought made her slightly giggle although she quickly stopped and started counting them. The task was far from easy as they all were moving but she thought she arrived at the number of ten.

"There are eleven of us." someone stated on her left, making her blench again.

"Oh really." she answered, now annoyed. Why had they all to come out of nowhere? At this rate she was going to die of a heart attack before dawn. _What a glorious death that'd be_ , she joked with herself.

"Yes, really." said the boy. She kept on looking towards the firelight, ignoring him.

The pipe suddenly started playing again, from the darkness surrounding them. Rachel looked around her, trying to spot the piper but he was nowhere to be found, and the newcomer had disappeared.

This time, the pipe's music got to her bones, moving her like never before. It seemed to her it told a story, a pretty sad story altogether. The pipe yelled out for the stars to hear, and then went singing as a wild river. It went galloping with deers, flying with mockingbirds, swimming with all kinds of fishes and crawling like a bug. No matter how euphoric a phrase sounded, it always ended crushed and destroyed, giving birth to another set of wild notes, and on, and on, and on...

The drums stopped playing at once and before she realised it, the dancers looked in her direction, with a spark of darkness in their stare.

 _Oops_. She swallowed.

The pipe kept on singing, hidden somewhere in the shadows, but got louder, and seemed to read in her like she was nothing but a page. She didn't like it.

The boy that had brought her to camp stepped in closer and took his hood off. His cold gaze pierced through her. She didn't like it either.

One after the other, each boy imitated him so she could finally see their faces. She could not help but notice the piper was missing, but he kept on playing.

She spotted Al on the far right, and when their eyes met he gave her a weak smile, maybe as an apology, maybe out of pity, she didn't know for sure.

"I believe you were already welcomed here." her kidnapper stated. "That's good, it'll make the ceremony shorter."

"The ceremo..."

"Do not speak, girl." he ordered with sparks of madness in his stare.

 _Great_ , she told herself. _Now I bet they're going to sacrifice me to some god_.

"Yeah, yeah I get it." she said. "I am to obey your orders and bow before you and even maybe clean your feet. Great. Now can we move on to the part where you tell me how I got here in the first place ?"

She saw Al grimace and shake his head. Of course she knew she was going overboard but honestly, what else could she do? Wait passively for bad stuff to happen to her? If she was going to die, let her at least die with answers.

"You didn't seem that big of a mouth when I saw you pitifully hiding behind that dead tree, _girl_." answered the boy, visibly angry. "You do not understand the situation you're in yet. You're not here to serve me. You're here to serve _with_ us, but I'll have to teach you what respect is."

"Calm down Fletch." ordered an authoritarian voice. "The girl does not need to be impressed more than she already is. Leave her be. You talk too much."

She knew that voice.

"Hello again, darling." the group's leader greeted her. "I'm sorry about Fletch's behaviour, he's a tough one. Don't hold it against him."

He walked to her and put a hand on her right shoulder but his tranquil walk couldn't make her forget how dangerous he had seemed to her on their first encounter. She made a fist, trying to hide her fear. Her action made him laugh.

"You're cleverer than you look, darling. And amusing."

He turned to his followers.

"Now, let's get this over with. Al!" he called. The black haired boy stepped in, obviously uneasy, and Rachel widened her eyes. "Al." he repeated. "You do know your words, don't you?"

"I do."

"Good. Boys."

The ten boys surrounded him and Al found himself in the middle of a circle, the leader and I facing him. Al cleared his throat.

"I, Al of Neverland, swear upon Magic to be loyal to my father Pan and my brothers Fletch, Irvin, Kyler, Ron, Drest, Philip, Quin, Tad, Cian and Lynd. I swear to serve Pan as long as I live and beyond." he proclaimed. _Wait_ , Rachel thought. _Wait. He can't mean..._

Al unsheathed a dagger from his coat and cut his hand's palm with no hesitation while Rachel screamed out for him to stop. But the said Pan placed a strong hand on her mouth and whispered in her ear: « Don't ruin it. He's been working for years for this moment. It'd be a shame to kill him now.» making her blood boil. As Al's vital fluid flowed on the dirty ground, the boys started chanting again, frightening Rachel to death. Neverland was far from what she'd had expected it to be.

Al approached them, trying to hide how scared he was of the boy by her side although his eyes gave him away. He presented his bloody hand to Pan.

"Here is the blood sealing my vow."

Pan smirked once more, visibly satisfied.

"Good job, boy. Make her drink it out of you." he ordered, as if he had ordered someone to toast him some bread.

"Wait..." Rachel took a step back. Al stared at her, his blood still flowing out of his body. She caught his blank gaze, as if he couldn't recognise her, like they hadn't talked minutes ago.

"There's no waiting, darling. It needs to be done now." and with that said, Pan joined the circle, observing the ongoing scene before him. Rachel quickly understood she couldn't escape them. They were too many. But maybe if she hit Al hard enough he would lose consciousness and then couldn't force her to drink his blood. Obviously.

She looked around her, trying to find a rock she could use.

There was nothing but dirt. Great. She was in the middle of the forest and there was no rock. What kind of curse was she under?

Al walked to her and took her hair in his clean hand, forcing her to face his reddish flesh. Pan's eyes glowed. _Madman_ , she thought again. _They're all completely crazy._

The boy forced her to open her mouth and managed a few drops in her throat making her cough, as she hoped to get rid of them, but it was too late: she had swallowed them. The metallic taste made her throw up and Rachel fell on her knees. Her eyes cried. Blood tasted horribly wrong.

She heard the boys leave one by one but her shaking body wouldn't allow her to move. Al had left already, leaving her there. She was alone again.

A strong arm pulled her up and she found herself facing a smiling Fletch.

"Quite entertaining wasn't it?"

She did not answer him.

He pointed a ladder on her left, fixed on a tree.

"This is your tree. You will sleep there from now on. Get some rest, you will need it tomorrow."

"What happens tomorrow ?" she dared to ask, causing the boy's smile to grow.

"Tomorrow is going to be your first day hunting."

"Hunting what?"

He looked at her weirdly.

"Would you happen to be stupid, girl? Go to bed. At once." and walked away.

 **Woooooow! Longest chapter so far! Hope you liked it! I'll see you all next time !**


	4. Chapter 4

**Helloooo there! Here I am, still in time. So I've decided on an update schedule ! I believe I can post at least once a week, maybe more if my beloved teachers don't suffocate me with tons of work ! Good news right? Follow the story so you can know when a chapter has been posted. Kisses from France!**

The sun never rose on the island, keeping constant darkness onshore, but it didn't seem to bother anyone. They woke up about the same time and went to bed at the same time: they lived in a strange cycle of having breakfast, going out in the woods on their own to do whatever they did, and climbing back to their trees to sleep until they somehow knew it was morning again.

In the middle of all these activities, Rachel was under Fletch's supervision and spent every hour of each day with him, hunting rabbits and other animals to feed the group. The boy had taught her to skin the poor creatures and empty their stomachs, to slice through their necks as they were still trying to escape her grasp, and finally to cook them, as surprising as it was.

During their time together, Fletch also taught her how the Lost Boys, as they called themselves, were prioritised: Pan obviously was their leader, Fletch was second man in command and was responsible for the food and commanding them when Pan was absent. Then came Irvin and Kyler, the two best fighters that spent most of their days improving their already acquired skills. Philip, Quin and Drest were responsible for reporting everything to Pan, going from a bird's new nest to some more secret informations she was not allowed to hear of. Ron, Cian and Lynd were of maintenance and training while Tad spent most of his time down a path no other than Al and him only took, by Pan's tree. Fletch never told her what was down there, avoiding her questions every time the topic came on. He would warn her by his cold gaze she was out of line and she would stop talking, getting back to her duty.

Rachel did not see the others often, more like rarely, and since she and her supervisor weren't too fond of each other, all she did all day was waking up, dressing, eating, hunting, cooking, eating again and falling asleep, without ever talking to anyone. But, her daily activity did have one bright side and the young girl exploited it at its maximum: she quickly knew each path she was walking on like the back of her hand, and each tree she walked past gave her her exact location away.

After what she believed was a few days (it was hard to know if it was daytime or nighttime in such a place) she managed to draw an accurate plan of the forest. And although she lacked information on most of the island, a plan was taking form in her head: an escape.

First, she had to do it at night while everyone would be asleep.

Second, she had to get rid of the sentinel in silent and make sure to hid him well in case someone unexpectedly woke up.

Third, she had to be quick. She knew better than trying to beat any of the guys in a race, so if she was even thinking of escaping, the quicker things were done the better. Then she would follow the human footprints Fletch had tried to hide from her several times before. People other than the Lost Boys and Pan, since he apparently didn't count himself in the group, lived somewhere on the island, and she was going to find them. They couldn't be worst than the group she had been forced with. If everything went well she would be far when "morning" came. And so, the night fell upon her, marking the beginning of her last hours in the camp.

She went to bed early on that night, finishing her meal as fast as she could so she didn't have to deal with whatever talk they'd have until bedtime.

Her room was not so spacious compared to what she could see of the others's but she couldn't have cared less: all she needed was a place to sleep and some privacy and her cabin gave her both. Built up in the trees to avoid eventual animal attacks, her private room was as comfortable as a treehouse could be: it had a one size bed with a mattress filled with leaves and dry grass, and a small dresser on which she could leave her clothes before sleeping.

Rachel waited long hours during which her heart kept racing out of nervousness. She had to get away no matter what, and so she awaited her time. And then it was there. Cautious, Rachel stepped out of bed already dressed and managed to climb down the wooden ladder to the ground. There, she silently moved to the cover of the trees and began walking. She knew the watcher was somewhere around there and she soon spotted him, confirming her knowledge. She had not expected it to be Al. The boy was sitting on a rock, and fortunately she could only see his back, wrapped in his dark and warm cloak. Meaning he couldn't see her. Meaning she could carry out her plan. Rachel knelt and grabbed a stone. It felt heavy in her hand, and even though she couldn't feel the cold through her thin clothes she shivered. She tightened her grip on the menacing object. _I can do it._ She approached him, making sure to jump from rock to rock in order to avoid dry leaves and reveal her location. Everything was going just fine. Rachel raised her arm and without waiting a second more, hit the boy as hard as she could on the back of the head. His body got thrown forward and went loose. He hit the floor, guaranteeing her success. Rachel almost yelled out of joy.

She looked around her, scrutinising the dark woods, listening for any suspect sound. The trees had fallen silent. She took it as a good sign: no one was awake. Freed from her heavy burden she rushed to the next stop: the footprints's location. She had memorised the path on her several expeditions with Fletch. She could at least thank him for that.

Rachel walked carefully, aware that she was not out of reach yet. She took good care of not walking in mud to avoid unwanted trackers, and even though that was slowing her down, anything was worth her freedom. She wasn't going back.

The girl was soon to find what she was looking for: there they were, clear as crystal, right in front of her eyes. The path led her deeper in the forest, to places she hadn't been allowed to go to before, places were she saw nothing but trees, but as she followed the mysterious yet saving footprints Rachel noticed tree trunks get bigger as they aged, branches get thicker, until the moonlight couldn't pierce through anymore. Rachel soon found herself in darkness, unable to continue her way. She sure hadn't planned this.

"Aren't you a bit far from camp, darling?"

Rachel froze.

 _Oh no._

She heard the wind rise as a cool breeze caressed her cheek, playing with her hair. The forest had fallen silent again, like she hadn't just heard the feared voice of the man that had kept her away from everything there was. She awaited for him to appear from the surrounding darkness but nothing came.

Just when she began to think she had made it up, she felt a breath on the back of her head, warming it with natural body heat. She turned around, frightened, but saw nothing except deep blackness. Where was he?

Rachel knew better than to fight that guy: she was well aware she was no match for him. But what else could she do? She had gotten this far, it was certainly not to go back and suffer whatever punishment he'd have in store for her.

She heard a giggle echo, up in the trees. There he was.

"You're pretty funny to observe, darling." Pan affirmed from a few steps away of where she stayed on guard. _There he comes_. "Watching you hit that poor fellow was quite a nice surprise if I may. I wasn't sure you had it in you. Very entertaining. "

Rachel pulled a face. She was _entertaining_?

"Leave me be." she said angrily, causing him to giggle again. " _You_ don't get to order me around. _You_ have no rights. And stop mocking me!"

"Oh believe me, darling, I am not mocking you. I'm laughing at myself for not seeing your true potential until now. What a waste of time, really."

"You're talking nonsense. Again. Now leave me alone." she demanded.

The voice fell silent for a moment.

"You are going back."

A simple sentence, full of dominance and power, ordering her. Again.

"You followed my footprints, darling. Did you really think you could get away from the island without me knowing?"

"I..."

"Listen to me. You won't leave this place you've apparently grown to hate for the simple fact that my word is law." He made a pause. "Tell me Rachel, do you believe in magic?"

"What happens if I don't?"

Pan laughed again.

"Then you would be a fool, darling."

"You're the fool to think you can keep me a prisoner my whole life."

"We'll see."

And then she heard a loud whistle and knew her time was up: she was indeed going back to camp and she could do nothing about it. When she felt Fletch's hands tie hers with rope, Rachel spit on the floor.

"I'll have your head, Pan. I swear it."

She heard his distant laugh again while he screamed for her to hear.

"I can't wait!"

 **ALSO many many many thanks to neillie511 and NataliaLeijon for becoming my first two followers! It's so exciting and motivates to write more!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hiiii! So it's 1:30 a.m. in France and after watching the NRJ Music Awards I decided to finish this fifth chapter! You're about to be introduced to a brand new character, with quite a personality: hope you like him!**

 **I would like to thank everyone that follows/favourites/reviews _Youth_. It's such a pleasant feeling to know people like what you do and enjoy it enough to let the author know. Thank you so much you're making me want to continue the adventure!**

 **Finally, just a reminder that you can TOTALLY tell me if you spot any mistake in my writing wether it's grammar, or in the plot, or something else, I'm all ears!**

 **and as always, I hope you enjoy this chapter! (I'm on my way to write chapter 6)**

Fletch was not gentle with her as he brought her back to camp. He pushed her forward often for the only apparent reason being not walking fast enough, he slapped her when she swore after falling for the fourth time, but what wound her most were the insults he spit at her face during the whole walk.

"Honestly girl, I am disappointed in you." he kept saying. "After everything I taught you since you arrived you could have done way better. And what was it about following Pan's footprints? I can't believe how stupid you are for even thinking they belonged to some stranger."

Rachel screamed back at him, outpouring through bitter words her hatred of the situation, and although he visibly enjoyed her never ending monologue he kept his attitude and mocked her even more.

They reached their goal too quickly for Rachel to know, and as silver light suddenly fell upon her as the moon revealed itself in the black night sky, Fletch surprisingly untied her. He pointed a finger at her, scaring her enough to take a step back. She stayed there, hardly maintaining any balance.

"Don't try to run again, girl. I have orders. Next time I'll cut your head off so fast you'll feel it fall at your feet. Do I make myself clear?"

He waited for an answer, staring at her, frozen, until she responded, in a broken voice.

"Limpid."

He then stepped towards his tree and left her on her own, like she was not a determined fugitive. He certainly believed he had scared her greatly enough for her to obey. Oh how wrong he was... Sure, she had failed this time; she just had the succeed the next. She would prepare herself better than ever, and train until she could outmatch each and everyone of them: she started to understand she'd have to defeat them all in order to definitely leave the place.

Fixated on her fresh goal, Rachel climbed back to the room she had thought of never seeing again. _Mom always says to expect the unexpected_ , she thought. _I should have had a weapon to fight back. I'd most likely be free right now. Silly me._

She got into bed and lay on her back, drifting into mixed thoughts.

"Hey." a voice resounded from the doorstep after some time.

Rachel looked up. There stood the youngest member of Pan's followers, Ron, with his long blond hair and dark eyes fixated on her. She sat, allowing him to enter her private space.

"I'm sorry to interrupt." he spoke again. "I saw you came back with Fletch and um... I... Wondered if everything was okay. He can be a real douchebag." he said, uneasy.

She couldn't help but slightly laugh. He smiled in return.

"So um..." he hesitated. "I'm aware we haven't been very welcoming, but um... the ritual... it's really an obligation for newcomers and um... I'm guessing no one told you anything about it, or about our lifestyle so I figured you could use some help with that."

"Oh."

He looked up at her, surprised.

"Maybe you need some rest; how uneducated of me. I sincerely apologise to you, miss Alt, I'll be on my way." he realised and turned around, starting to walk back.

"No wait!" Rachel called out, causing him to look over his shoulder. "How do you know my name?" she asked, but Ron didn't answer. She gave up. "You can stay."

He nodded and sat on the bed next to her. He pulled his head back on the wall.

"Where to start..." he sighed. "I've been here more years than I can count and um... I've always known Neverland this way. You'll get used to it, really." he turned his head to her. "The ritual however... It's a bit different. Pan established it just some time ago. Once you swear him eternal loyalty there's no going back: you're forever linked to him, even in death."

"Scary."

"Quite. In exchange he promises you eternal protection and recognition for your worth. Although I totally understand how shocked you were. It's not very um... conventional." he went silent for a moment. "Do you believe in magic miss Alt?"

"I'm sorry?"

"You heard me."

Rachel glared at him.

"I don't know what you're trying to say. Weren't you here to help?"

"You won't understand if you don't believe. Come with me."

He got up and opened the door, making his way down the tree. Rachel frown, but grabbed her coat and ended up following him down the ladder, curious as ever. She jumped the last two rungs, craving to know what the young boy intended to show her. He firmly took her hand and led her through the sleeping camp, motioning her to be silent. Quickly, they found themselves walking in between tall trees, like two floating beings on their yet unknown goal. Rachel started to wonder if the blond boy was mocking her, but out of eagerness she kept walking quietly, waiting to see what he was up to. The boy stopped on top of a cliff and finally let go of her hand. She knew this place: Fletch had threatenned her to die right there, on this spot. She stepped forward and looked down, anxious. A powerful wave exploded on a steep rock, several meters down the void, causing icy sprays to break out on her face. She felt her hands shake and legs go loose. Ron grabbed her wrist and brought her back to him, maintaining him against his torso.

"Hey calm down, there's no danger."

"Wh..."

"Look."

He seized a hidden necklace under his coat, a necklace on which a tiny bottle containing grey powder discretely glowed in the dark. He took it off and handed it to her. She accepted the gift, not so sure of what to say. He motioned her to sit down, and so they did.

"This is what Pan calls pixie dust." he taught her. "With deep belief you can do what you wish with it."

"Can I go home with it?"

Ron laughed. There he was, mocking her once more. What was it with them psychologically harassing her?

"You can't leave Neverland without Pan's consent. We've all tried and failed."

He pointed a dark silhouette floating on water. A ship, she realised. What's a ship doing here?

"This is Captain Hook's beloved Jolly Roger. I remember when his crew and he first arrived on the island, a long time ago. I had just arrived myself, and these mysterious grown-ups thought themselves capable of escaping Pan's grasp. I was absolutely stunned: could this band of pirates really bring me back to my family and friends? So one night, I waited for Pan to climb to his tree to unsure myself a safe way to the beach. When I got there, I swam to the ship and made a deal with Hook. He'd bring me home if I got him a certain quantity of powder for his cannons. Inexperienced, I thought he talked of this very pixie dust that you're holding right now, and that I had seen Pan hold countless times. I stole it from him. For the next few days, Pan's anger could not be controlled, even by Fletch. He put the island upside down, locking us all in high settled cages (there were three of us back then) until we admitted the fraud, each day menacing to cut the frail rope holding us in the air. When I finally gave away the truth, Pan did not punish me, or so I thought. He let me keep the dust and allowed me to join the pirates on their journey. We set sail to the horizon but never got to leave the creek. Sea currents kept bringing us back making it impossible for us to disappear. I immediately understood that the consequences for my action would follow me for a very long time, of course Pan had mocked me. So I somehow got away from the pirates and decided to face my fate: I went back to camp. While I was away, things had gotten different: the ritual was now an absolute obligation, in order to avoid future misbehaviours."

Rachel was speechless. Ron spoke so freely of such a thing, but... why? How could someone change so drastically?

"How... How long have you been living here, Ron?" she barely had the force to ask, apprehending his answer.

"Oh, you lose count after a few days, don't you? Um... Let's say two... Three hundred years? Approximately of course!" he added when he noticed her eyes widen. _Three HUNDRED YEARS?!_ she screamed inside her head. _How is he physically so young?_

"But you're just so..."

"Teen looking? Yeah that's another particularity of the place: you don't age. I probably should have celebrated some time ago my three hundreds and sixteenth birthday, something like that."

The girl was absolutely amazed by such incredible revelations. But something still bugged her.

"Ron?"

"What is it?"

"Do you know how I got here?"

He let out a brief, reassuring smile.

"That I do, miss Alt. You came here flying with Pan's shadow leading the way."

She gazed at him, absolutely unconvinced.

"Didn't you have your dose of mockery already? Stop playing around with me!"

"Oh but I'm not, miss Alt. You did come here flying, and I believe the only way back is learning to fly away. And this is why you need me: because this" he took the bottle back "is the only way to do so. Unless you convince our beloved boss to free you before the next full moon."

"And when would that be?" Rachel challengingly asked.

He smirked at her, darkening his lovely traits.

"That would be tomorrow night miss Alt."


	6. Chapter 6

**So I just might have written this chapter in two days... Oops? Hope you like it! and don't be shy, leave me a review (although if you're lazy like me don't bother)**

"When you say "tomorrow night"," Rachel prudently asked. "you don't actually mean " _tomorrow_... night"? Right?"

The long haired boy nodded, a confident smile still glued to his beautiful lips.

"I mean what I said, miss Alt. You have two choices: you trust me or you trust him. Not so difficult, or is it?" He waited for an answer, but noticing her hesitation he added: "You do have a third option, but I can assure you you won't like it very much."

She stepped back, freeing herself from his protecting arms. Something wasn't right, not right at all.

"What is it?"

"You can swear Pan eternal loyalty and live here with us. It's not so bad, that I can say. Take it from the one guy that spent over a century trying to escape the island." He laughed at himself, probably amused by some inside joke she could not understand. "It's a bit of Stockholm syndrome as you say back in your world, but at least here you're valued for what you are, and absolutely not for what others want you, or need you to be. Think of it."

She couldn't believe what she heard. Was this guy seriously proposing her to stay in this awfully dangerous place and helping her to escape at the same time? She could not help but frown. What was he up to...?

"So you're telling me staying or leaving is entirely depending on my own free will? Is that what you're trying to say?"

"Absolutely, miss Alt. Until tomorrow night."

"And what if I choose to trust you? What's telling me it's not another of your big jokes? What's telling me you're not going to rush back to your comrades after we're done talking and mock me all night long while I'm full of hope to finally be able to leave?"

"Oh dear, stop asking so many questions, will you? If we are here, it's mainly because you lack belief, and you're proving me right each time you open those lips of yours. You still did not answer my first question."

"Which was?"

"Do you believe in magic, miss Alt?"

"I don't even know what you're talking of. What do you mean by "magic"?"

"You know exactly what I mean. It was time you came here, you've started growing old." He seemed to intensely think for a moment. "Did you even believe me when I said you flew in order to come here?"

"Not an instant."

"Oh dear..."

"What! Is it so surprising?" she asked him angrily. She started to seriously be troubled by the boy and his divagations.

'Let's say hopeless. I'm afraid you are not to leave this place, miss Alt. Not now, not tomorrow night, not ever."

"Lies." she spit.

He looked truly sorry for her. He grimaced, putting the slightly glowing bottle back around his neck.

"I am no liar, miss Alt. None of us are, it's part of the rules, which I'm sure you don't recall since you broke two of them already. We all know you're not called Brenda and we all know you ruined your only chance of escaping by allowing Pan to catch you back. And if you don't even believe, then there's nothing I can do for you. I sincerely apologise for wasting your time. I'll walk you back, if you allow me."

And so he did, placing an arm behind her to show her the way.

"Wait." she said, causing him to turn back to her, with glowing pupils. "Wait, I want to give it a try."

"You won't just give it a try." Ron corrected her. "You'll have to succeed, or else you'll die."

"I'll _what_?"

"You heard me."

He rushed her back on top of the deadly cliff. In a simple move, he uncorked the bottle and threw the powder upon her, causing the young girl to cough.

"So what now?" she managed to say between two coughs.

"Now you believe you can fly."

And he threw her off land while she screamed out of terror.

Rachel felt her body collide with the wind as she tumbled down to certain death. She could not die so easily, could she? Until she realised. Of course she could. But Rachel was not one to choose easy paths, and living was so very precious to her. As she fell, she understood there was a good chance of finishing her course in water, the number of sharp rocks being very limited. Of course there also was a percentage of dying in excruciating pain, but Rachel tried really hard not to think of it and preferably focused on the raging sea below her. When she hit it, violently, and although she felt like hitting hard stone and a rock cut her right arm, Rachel almost screamed out of joy. She was alive. The girl swam up to the fresh air and when she reached it she let out a sincere and hysterical laugh. She then swam to the nearest land she saw, a nearby beach on which Ron awaited her, arms crossed.

"You tried to _murder_ me!" she accused him pointing a finger at him when she arrived there, seawater dripping her face. But he did not answer what she would have imagined:

"You failed so pitifully so don't tell me what I did or did not. You're trying again."

And with that said he led her back to the top of the cliff and pushed her again before she could protest.

Rachel found herself falling again, absolutely terrorised. She would not have the same luck twice.

"Fly!" she heard Ron's voice yell. "Come on!"

 _What the fuck_ , she let her mind slip away. _What the actual fuck_. But still, she extended her arms and legs, momentarily slowing her fall. She felt some of the remaining powder get into her nose, causing her to sneeze... and reach back the several meters she had descended a second ago. Her body stayed still. She barely heard Ron exclaim a resounding: "Yes!" all she could think of being her current state of floating in the air without any strings holding her.

"What the actually actual fuck?!" she let out in a desperate tone. "Ron! Help me out!"

She felt the tip of his fingers scratch her back, and without ever stopping to stare in shock at the deadly void below her, she seized his wrist and let herself be pulled back to safety. As soon as her foot touched land she felt herself rise into the air again, as Ron lifted her and turned on himself, with a victorious giggle.

"You did it!" he exclaimed. "Dear, you did it!"

"Leave me be, you _freak_!" she shouted. "You're completely wasted!" Finally, he allowed her on the ground again and Rachel let out the loudest sigh of relief she ever could have let out. "Don't ever touch me again!" she threatened. "You're all mad here! I'm lucky I did not _die_ because of your stupid joke! Oh my god!" And started to walk back to camp, trying to control her shaking and cold body.

"You succeeded, miss Alt. You have to admit it!" she heard him say in her back, but she kept on walking. She had had enough. Walking through the woods back to camp, the sudden realisation of what had happened hit her hard, causing her to fall on her knees, mouth opened.

She heard Ron approach her as dry leaves cracked behind her.

"I... I did fly, didn't I?" she asked shakily.

"You did, dear. How did it feel?"

Rachel looked up at him, unsure of what to answer.

"I have mixed feeling." she finally said. "It was very scary. Intensively scary, I'd say. But I was never so relieved to stop doing something."

Her words made him laugh as he sat next to her, and crossed his legs.

"Are you okay, though? We've all been hard on you and..."

"You _have been_ hard? Boy you just threw me off a cliff!"

"As I said. It's in the past. Now that you learnt flying the boys will accept you better. We've all been through it."

"Then I don't understand... What's the punishment for breaking the rules if gravity doesn't affect us?"

"You forgot pixie dust. You can't fly without it, so basically Pan flies next to you until you hit the rocks. And then he gives your corpse to the crocodile. He finds it funny."

"Has it happened before?" The look on his face told Rachel it had. _Oh yes, it did happen..._ "Did you... lose someone?" she barely dared to ask.

"That would be none of your concern, miss Alt. We're done for tonight."

 **So nothing very amazing except for the brief flight haha sorry if it disappointed your expectations. Reading it now I have to admit I'm not so proud of it... Anyway I'll make it up to you! Just you wait chapter 7!**


	7. Chapter 7

**And here are I am with the promised chapter! As always, thank you for reading this fanfiction, it means a lot! Special thanks to my 4 followers, to the 3 readers that favourited** ** _Youth_** **, and to the reviewers! Your lovely comments motivate me daily on writing and believe me when I say it's very well appreciated not to "talk in the wind" as we say in French... meaning it's very well appreciated to be listened to hahaha**

 **Hope you like this 7th chapter ! (Whhhhhaaaat? Already?)**

"Good morning sleepy head." said a voice.

Rachel growled. Her sheets felt so soft, and her pillow so big and comfortable... The girl buried her head under the blanket and attempted to fall back asleep, like any teenager her age would do. Just as she felt herself drift into oblivion her blanket flew off her, causing the sleepy girl to curl up in order to avoid the freshness of the early morning air.

"It's time to wake up, darling." added the voice.

Rachel complained again, and this time put the pillow over her head, organising a semblance of comfort around her. _Like hell I'm gonna get off bed._ She heard a distant giggle, and suddenly realised it was not her mom that had awakened her. She sat up straight in an instant, eyes wide opened but did not need to wait for her vision to focus to know who was there.

"Pan." she guessed. He laughed again.

"The one and only. You're late for training, darling."

Rachel glared at him, uneasy of having _him_ around her room. Pan was sitting at the window, in perfect balance, like if he was as lightweight as a bird and did not fear to fall. It was most likely the case, and just as if he'd wanted to prove it, he stood up on the narrow edge of the window.

"Dress up." he ordered. "We have a long day ahead of us." And he jumped off the tree, making her scream of surprise, but she quickly shut herself up: of course he would jump out of the window. _Showoff_. Rachel shook her head and did as he said, and so, she was soon ready to go.

Pan was waiting for her, sat in the branches of his tree, playing his enchanted flute. When he noticed her approaching, he climbed down to the ground and motioned her to follow him. Rachel did not have a choice, she obeyed and joined him, always making sure to leave a few meters between them. She did not trust him at all.

"Why am I not going with Fletch?" she finally asked, while walking. _It's odd_ , she thought. _Does it have anything to do with last night?_

Pan waited a moment before answering.

"I hear you flew last night. Adding your failed escape, I might just say you have everything combined to... serve me right. You do not need Fletch's supervision anymore as I am going to train you myself."

Rachel froze. This was absolutely not how she had planned things to go.

"I will not vow you loyalty." she said in between her teeth. Pan turned to her.

"Right. Keep walking, we're not there yet." And just like that he went out of sight, disappearing in the bushes. Rachel ran after him. There was no way she'd be able to get back to camp by herself now, as Pan had taken her to a part of the forest she had never been to before. _He did it on purpose, that asshole,_ she cursed.

Looking for the devilish boy, she finally spotted him entering a huge cave entrance. She had no other choice but to go after him.

When she entered the cave, she felt an absolute cold air wrap around her body, but it didn't stop her: she walked forward in the darkness, but was soon to trip over the ground's irregularities. Pan caught her each time she fell, for as he said:

"I need you in good health, darling. You're pretty useless bruised."

And Rachel hated the rough touch of his hands on her skin. She shivered each time he had to catch her, and besides the fact she tried to focus on her feet, she didn't know the cave and had no light to spot the stones and holes. She was living a nightmare, but, as the darkness started to fade, Rachel saw a bright and warm light peaking through a hole ahead of her. _The exit!_

All of a sudden, Pan's footsteps went quiet. She bumped into him and had to take a step back. The boy's eyes shone with mischief as he turned to her.

"I am about to show you something no one on this island has seen except me. Be honoured." he told her.

Rachel felt the air go colder around them. She did not like the imperious look he had taken.

"Quit playing." she said sharply. She saw Pan's teeth grow into a big childish smile, almost as if he had lost a few years of maturity.

"Don't be fooled." he corrected her. "It's all a game."

He grabbed her wrist and walked into the light, forcing her behind him. They entered another room, enlightened by torches fixed on the walls. In the centre was a pool, slightly reflecting them, as if it glowed on its own. A hundreds-years-old tree took root in the middle of it, exposing its huge branches to the open roof, almost reaching the stars. Rachel was agape before the beauty of the scenery, aware she was lucky to witness such a magical combination of natural elements.

"Nice, isn't it?" she barely heard Pan state, by her side. He pulled her again after him and walked towards the tree.

Once they reached it, Pan started to climb and she followed him, eager yet concerned about what she was about to discover. They climbed for what seemed like forever. She was panting, tired by the effort she was not used to make. Pan however, was in his element. He was a few meters above her, climbing fast, naturally taking the easiest path to his goal. He waited for her sometimes, but soon grew tired of it and started climbing again after advising her. Finally, he stopped on the biggest branch and sat down until she caught up with him.

"Don't worry, darling. We'll work on that." he told her.

If eyes could kill, Pan would have been dead before he finished his sentence. Rachel had never been so tired in her whole life. Black dots appeared before her eyes, and her body suddenly felt light. Pan sat her down against the tree trunk, and handed her a Granola bar.

"They're your favourite, aren't they?" he asked, suddenly unsure when she didn't take it. He was right of course, yet Rachel kept on refusing it.

"Don't be such a kid." he insisted. "Eat it or you'll faint. We're not done here." He forced the bar in her hand. "It's not even poisoned, come on."

Eyeing him as much as she could in her state, Rachel took a bite. The sugar flowed through her body system, shaking her from head to toe and she finished the bar before she even noticed. At her biggest surprise, Pan said something pretty close to an apology.

"I forgot you need breakfast. Remind me next time. It's really annoying having to take care of you."

Or at least she thought it an apology.

After a few minutes, and a few more of these bars Pan made appear in his hands, Rachel stood up, ready to go. Pan showed her a hole in the trunk and before she actually spotted it he disappeared in it. _What is this again_ , she thought. She went after him, and found herself inside the tree. Stairs were going up and down, directly sculpted in the living wood. Pan was waiting for her a few stairs below her.

"I won't wait forever, darling. Hurry up."

They went down the stairs in complete silence and surprisingly, she could see. The wood sparkled in the dark, making it easy for anyone to spot the next stair and continue on their way.

At the bottom of the tree, there was a room, large enough for three or four adults to stand and wander about. Rachel made a questioning look when Pan turned to her, waiting for her reaction.

"You don't recognise this place?" he asked. Rachel shook her head, confused. Pan sighed. "Too bad. Well anyway, let's do some proper training."

He grabbed two wooden swords that lay on one of the beds and made his way back to the top, motioning her to follow him.

"We made it all the way here just for two _toys_?!" Rachel exclaimed. Pan gazed at her, visibly angry.

"We made it all the way _here_ because you need to progress on these climbing skills of yours, and because these _swords_ are far more valuable than you know. Now be silent. This place calls out for respect."

"What even _is_ this place?"

Pan rolled his eyes, but came back and sat down on the wooden chair overhanging the room. _More like a throne_ , she thought to herself. Pan looked around him. She sat on the closest bed and waited for his answer. For a long moment, the room was filled with silence, but the look on Pan's face told her there was something very special about this tree, or even this whole cave. He looked almost... nostalgic. When he started talking, his voice filled the air with power and Rachel realised he was more than the island's ruler: he was linked to it in a way she could not comprehend. Almost as in the stories she'd tell her little brother (what was his name again?) before going to bed.

"This place is the island's heart." Pan finally said. "This is where magic was born, and where the fairies lived for a very long time... The previous Lost Boys and I used to live here as well."

Rachel raised a brow. _Previous Lost Boys? Ex house? What is he trying to tell me..._

"One day the fairies fell sick and despite all our efforts they died, one by one. Or so we thought..." he stopped talking and made his way towards the stairs again. "But we're not here for storytelling. Let's go, there's still a lot to do. Evening comes faster than you'd think."

 **Sooooo any idea what might have happened there? And... Is Rachel actually forgetting about her family? Nah she can't be serious... Let me know what you think!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Well hello! I'm sorry I didn't upload in more than a week but with the recent events, I didn't really have inspiration for a few days... Anyway, I'm back and won't let myself into any grieving state anymore. I want to continue this adventure.**

 **I also want to thank everyone reviewing this story, it helps a lot ! Love you all!**

 **I hope you enjoy !**

For some reason, the way back outside the tree was longer than the way in. Still, Pan walked gracefully before her, strangely seeming to fade into the tree itself. Yet he was right there, within reach.

She almost touched him to make sure he was no illusion, but let her fingers slip on the walls instead, surprised the wood felt rough yet warm against her skin. Finally they reached the exit. The pair got through it and landed on the branch from before. And Pan continued his way down the tree, jumping this time from branch to branch, fearless of the void below him. She watched him for an instant and had to admit she admired the way he moved so easily in such an environment. Compared to him she looked only a beginner, and not even talented as it seemed. Sighing, she clumsily started to climb down the tree after him, trying not to make a fool of herself in case he observed her. He was most likely observing her, she believed, and the way she moved up in the tree. He would probably advice her to get used to high places (which she was really uncomfortable with) when she'd reach the ground, too far below for her own taste.

She set foot on a small hole in the trunk, slowly, making sure the move was safe. Reassured she put all her weight on it.

Mistake.

She lost balance and slipped.

Rachel screamed. In a desperate action she reached out for the nearest branch, on her right. Her fingers nearly touched the leaf before gravity caught her in its grasp. _Fuck_.

Everything went extremely fast. She spotted Pan, visibly full of himself as the victorious smile he always held progressively disfigured his face. She caught a twinkle from his eyes, a spark that freaked her out. He was content. And while she dropped to aeon, Rachel decided she refused to meet his expectations. She shut her mouth closed, not giving him the pleasure to hear her painfully dying when she would reach the ground.

She just had a ten thousandth of second to think of the family she had been taken away from until she... was caught by two strong arms, and the sound of someone breathing out heavily.

"You still need to work on these flying skills of yours." Pan growled while putting her back on the ground. Still a bit dizzy, Rachel took a moment before she actually was able to stand on her feet without miserably falling in the dirt. Pan looked rather pissed off yet he offered her the support she needed until she got better.

"Mmf.." Rachel reacted to his stare. "Isn't pixie dust required or something?"

The boy managed a smile Rachel did not comprehend. Usually, Pan's smirks were full of mockery, or almost playful, but this time was different. Since he had sat down with her within the tree, his smile had changed. It was more... Faint. And faked, like he didn't actually feel like doing so. Its Machiavellian charisma had disappeared and Rachel did not know what to think of it.

Pan dropped the swords and grabbed his pipe, and, as he closed his eyes a strange wind started playing with Rachel's hair, blinding her for microseconds.

He began his song, causing the girl to shiver at the beautiful sound. She had always been curious about music, and loved listening to it after school, as she drove her way back home. And even though Pan's sound had nothing to do with what she listened to, the moment was suspended.

The warm wind rose over them, as if it had its own will. Rachel felt all weight leave her body as her bones became lighter at every note passing. But all of a sudden the music stopped, and Pan looked at her again. He was silent for an instant, then rolled his eyes.

"Is something the matter?" she asked.

"Nothing of your concern." he answered sharply. He handed her one of the two swords he picked back up. "Let's get to work."

Unsure, Rachel took it, but let its tip touch the ground.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" she asked drawing circles in the dirt with the wooden blade. Pan walked to her and positioned her, without ever breaking eye contact.

"Positioning of the body is essential." he said before moving her members, and not answering her question at all. He placed his hands on her arms. "The shoulder of your sword arm must always be pointed toward your opponent. This makes your torso a smaller target and will protect many of your vital organs, which is quite important if you ask me."

He kept on showing her the basics, like how to know you're at the right distance of your opponent, and it was absolutely exciting, but Rachel did not understand why he gave so much of his time to teach her swords fighting.

"Remaining calm in all situations is what will keep you alive, darling. If you get anxious about anything your adversary could do, you're dead. Always remember that whatever you will be able to do in training, you won't do in an actual fight. In fact, you'll only be at 10 percent of your skills, which is why you need to master the basics until it comes to you as naturally as walking."

Hours flew by, and even if the sky stayed still, Rachel somehow felt the evening come. She had gotten used to the constant darkness, despite the oddness of it. The place was already strange without it.

At some point, Pan let down his sword and took Rachel's back. He disappeared. And reappeared before Rachel had the time to analyse what her eyes had witnessed. His hands were empty of their weapons.

"How..." she started to ask before being interrupted by Pan.

"Don't you love a bit of mystery? C'mon. We're off."

He took her hand and suddenly they were near a flowing river, somewhere outside the forest. Rachel knew the place as she had spent hours trying, and failing, to fish with Fletch. Pan pointed a pile of clothes nearby.

"You've got soap, a towel and clean clothes. Bring the dirty ones you wear back to camp, Ron'll take care of it." And he walked into the forest before she got the chance to say something.

Despite the facts that anyone passing by could see her naked, and that the water was obviously cold, Rachel enjoyed her bath. She had not been able to clean herself very often in the past few days (or was it weeks?), and it was horribly felt, especially with her greasy hair. Ron had been right about losing rapidly track of time, but to realise it was terrifying.

Rachel sank her head and enjoyed the feeling of the strong current caressing her body. She was firmly holding on to two rocks, finally serene and invigorated after her long day. That is when she heard a voice echo in her ears.

At first, she thought she dreamed it, but it was soon heard again. Rachel opened her eyes and tried to see through the blurry and dark water. A faint light made its way to her, tranquilly floating in the raging current as if it did not attain it. Rachel could not take her eyes off it, as the peaceful phenomenon spread a strong attractive aura around itself. The closer it got, the warmer Rachel felt. She couldn't stay underwater for too long anymore but the young girl forced herself to forget about it and concentrated on the glow, something was about to happen and she wanted to witness it.

Rachel heard the same voice chant very clearly in her head. She did not know the language it was using, but she somehow comprehended it. The song was about ancient and sacred times. Times when magic lived inside the peoples and took care of their wellbeing as long as they used it wisely. But then a dark force came and the magic progressively died out of the hearts. The light approached Rachel, blinding her, and touched her forehead.

Rachel suddenly felt herself fall backwards and her vision turned brownish. She was floating in the air above the island. Or should she say the burning island. Everywhere she looked, black smoke rose into the air, taking root in the bright fires devouring the centuries-old-trees. Rachel tried to move her body, but it didn't obey to her command. She was not in control anymore. Onshore, Rachel spotted wild animals with glowing eyes fight a group of humans wearing coloured clothes and plumes. Their eyes were dark, and empty of any compassion. The adversaries fought crazily, risking their lives each second in order to cause their enemy great pain, no matter what it took them. Then she saw a running figure breaking into the trees, about fifty meters East, and her body suddenly moved along with it. The silhouette ran fast, jumping and dodging its obstacles with no semblance of hesitation. Rachel had a hard time keeping up with it, although she was not in charge of her speed and trajectory. The youngster, for as much as she could see, kept increasing their speed, for they were either scared or determined. And suddenly, the two of them burst into a clearing. Rachel recognised Pan's camp, or at least the place looked like it, without the tree houses and campfire. There was also near to a hundred people awaiting the blonde child that she had followed. As soon as she got into the camp, the young runner made her way towards a middle aged woman with long and beautiful brown hair, and a strange hat made of roots on her head. Her skin was covered with purple tattoos, each one different, but forming an elegant pattern. She wore a long, Victorian dress with short sleeves showing her arms, and her countless scars. A strong and powerful aura came from her, and as Rachel's body landed on a branch nearby, the girl bowed.

"My Queen." the runner started, barely breathing. "The Natives and the Forest have begun their deadly fight again. Please allow us to butt in!"

The lady looked down on her, and sighed. She had dark circles below her eyes, testifying of her tiredness. She probably hadn't slept in a long time.

"The time is not right, my young fighter. Not just yet. Awaiting is the key to success."

The blonde girl lost all self control.

" _Awaiting_!? But awaiting _what_? Awaiting _who_? There is no time for passiveness my Queen. Magic is wearing off, our people can't fly anymore, and our usually peaceful neighbours are fighting to _death_! I say we change this, I say we act instead of letting everything we care about disappear! Isn't it what we were born for? Isn't it our duty? We need..."

"That's enough Tinkerbell!" the lady interrupted. "I am your Queen, I am your leader, and you vowed me loyalty. You did it because you trusted me with your life, not so long ago. In these times of war and uncertainty we need to stick together and decide wisely what is best for the survival of all. Do you understand?"

The said Tinkerbell bit her lower lip, probably swallowing any more words she had in store.

"I do, my Queen. However..."

"The discussion is closed. Make yourself useful, my young fighter, I hear we need more fire wood for tonight." The lady walked away.

Obviously unsatisfied, Tinkerbell bumped into a rock and turned around to disappear into the woods.

At her big surprise, Rachel's body followed the Queen instead. They both entered a tent and while the beautiful lady let herself drop on her mattress, Rachel sat on the top of a chair. Another woman with yellow eyes entered, and sat on the chair, right below the girl. By that time, Rachel had figured she could not be seen by others, while she could see them. The situation was quite uncomfortable, especially when she had no idea what was going on.

"She's quite a temper, isn't she?" the newcomer asked. The Queen smiled and slightly laughed.

"Indeed. She's a powerful fairy. Or at least she will be when she masters wind riding as much as her potential shows us." She went silent for a moment. "She's dangerous, right?" She turned to the other woman. "Tell me what the odds said of her."

The ginger woman looked hesitant.

"There... is destruction in her future but even I can't tell if she will cause it or be a victim of it. It is blurry, Hilda. And dark. I'm afraid a long night is coming upon us, but I can't tell when nor why. Tinkerbell is right when she says we need to act. We're running out of time."

Even then, the Queen shook her head.

"No. My visions are reliable. The solution is not in this world, nor is born in another just yet. As I said, all we can do is wai..."

She was interrupted by screams of agony outside her tent. Both women looked at each other and grabbed their daggers.

"So it has come for us." the red-haired woman stated before she ran to her people. "To the Echo Cave! All of you! Now!"

Rachel opened her eyes as she felt water wetting her again. She was back into the river. The light was gone.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi guys! I'm well aware I've been away for quite some time now (a month I believe ?) but please accept my apologies. I had a hard time writing lately but I'm not giving up! One sentence at a time hahaha anyway... Here's chapter 9!**

Rachel walked outside the river, ignoring the cold air wrapping itself around her naked body. She grabbed the towel Pan had left for her and managed to get dressed. She was lost in her thoughts, assimilating the vision she just had, if that's what it was. She spent quite some time sat on the grass, not moving a muscle but soon enough her wet hair made her sneeze. She swore. She had witnessed the very same story she used to tell her brother to get him to sleep. Rachel closed her eyes, remembering the sight of the blonde Tinkerbell girl. Of the Fairy Queen Hilda. And the madness getting into the Neverland people once a year, that caused them to cruelly end each other's lives. The ubiquitous song that illustrated the different scenes. A guttural music, so different from Pan's pipe but as meaningful. And as beautiful.

Rachel stood up as she felt a presence in her back. She turned around and noticed Fletch approaching.

"You better be ready." he said in the arrogant tone he always had. "Tonight's your ritual."

Rachel was not surprised by this statement for she knew it would be coming sooner or later. She nodded and walked after the boy. The weight of the dagger hidden in her clothes reassured her in her decision. Things were finally going to change.

They were soon back. The Lost Boys had prepared a gigantic campfire and had begun their chanting, just like she had witnessed it before. The drums echoed in every part of the island, announcing the becoming of a new Lost Boy. No other sound but these two, and maybe the wind passing by, were heard. The ground trembled by the dancing feet. Even the earth knew better than resist these powerful boys.

Suddenly, without warning, Pan's pipe made itself heard from the nearby trees. As soon as the music reached their ears, the boys gathered around her in a perfect circle and froze in waiting.

Pan appeared by her side and bent over her, susurrous in her left ear:

"I have a little present for you tonight, darling. I hope you take it as the proof of my honesty towards you."

As soon as he closed his mouth, Rachel stepped aside and grabbed her dagger. She shook away the fear that everything was going too easily and faced the dark leader.

"You will stop whispering in my ear." she said, trying to stay calm. "I'm no toy whatsoever. Drop the act, Pan. You and I both know who you truly are."

Her statement caused him to giggle and she saw a spark of amusement lit in his dark eyes. What else was she expecting ? Pan stood there, still laughing and didn't seem to realise that at each second passing the girl was drawing closer and closer to him, her hand firm on the handle of her weapon. This was her chance.

She jumped towards him and, falling upon him on the floor, drew her blade to his throat with no glimpse of hesitation. Pan laughed even harder.

"Oh can you _please_ stop laughing for once in your life?" Rachel grumbled. She insisted the blade against his soft and delicate skin and resisted the temptation of making clear the fact that she would not hesitate to free herself no matter what the price was.

"Sure, darling." Pan kept laughing hysterically. Rachel slightly cut his tensed throat as pure rage flowed to her head.

"I know I need your agreement to leave Neverland."

Silence was then so dense you could feel it rubbing against your skin. Pan locked his eyes into hers and what she saw there was anything but mockery. She felt a wave of guilt shake her but she stood still, knowing for sure the boy was playing his tricks on her again. Pan sat and pushed her away gently before she could make a move to stop him. He didn't break eye contact for an instant.

"You've always made things your way, darling." he said out of nowhere.

"Stop. Calling. Me. That." Rachel roared. Pan slightly laughed again.

"Of course you wouldn't like this nickname. Look, I can't let you go, however..."

"You will get me back home, you filthy little..."

"There's no need for such insults, darling. There's so much to know about this place."

Rachel opened her mouth.

"By the way..." he added. "Where's little Ben? I thought you told me you had brought him Fletch!"

"I have." echoed the hunter's voice from the crowd. "Shitty boy almost escaped my grip when we arrived. Had to look everywhere on the island to find him. I even ran into the Piccaninny tri..." Fletch's voice stopped when he realised the words he had let out.

"Fool." Pan simply said. "So you think she was not enough of an annoyance before?" He looked back at Rachel who, eyes wide open, stared at Fletch.

"So there are other people on the island." she whispered to herself.

Pan firmly took her arm.

"Indeed. But you wouldn't find them even if you spent a lifetime looking for them. You won't want to anyway."

"Let me go!" Rachel yelled at him as she tried to free herself from his grip.

"Fletch!" he called. "Introduce our newest recruit to the boys."

Then she saw him. Ben. Half hidden behind Fletch's long cloak. Her young brother. As electrified, Rachel pounced in his direction while freeing herself using her blade to cut through Pan's flesh. She felt absent from her body in these quick seconds although she was very well conscious of what she was doing. She felt no remorse as Pan screamed and let go of her to press the bleeding wound with his other hand. His clothes quickly took a deeper shade of black, and as his hot blood dropped to the ground, he grabbed his pipe. His fingers left red marks on it, which he knew would never leave. In this moment Pan couldn't have cared less. His eyes were blurred with anger and when he brought the instrument to his lips, he knew full well he could never undo what he was about to do. Rachel saw nothing of it. All her attention was directed towards her sibling, for now prisoner of Fletch, who couldn't stop laughing, louder than ever.

"Let's see if you've got the stomach to fight me, _girl_. I hope you took advantage of Pan personally training you."

The pipe's first note made itself heard, and as soon as it got to Rachel's ears, the young girl felt weak and collapsed on the floor, unconscious. Slowly, as the music intensified, Rachel's body rose. It was imperceptible at first for she barely moved a millimetre or two above the ground, but it soon became quite consequent. The Lost Boys gathered under her. All eleven of them stared in shock at the powerful magic taking action before them. They couldn't believe their eyes. Of course they knew Pan was powerful, they just never fully realised how much until this very instant.

Pan's music kept on filling the air around the young girl. Sparks of magic danced all around them, making a magnificent show for anyone else who would have been witnessing the whole scene. For the present protagonists, these sparks were as dangerous as a wildfire. They burnt them when they hit their exposed skin, and blinded them for microseconds due to their intense brightness. Pan smirked. Finally, all his efforts were showing results. He couldn't take his eyes off the levitating body in front of him. No one could, despite the dangers of the flying flames. Ben had started crying earlier but Ron had taken him away. He was probably in his room by now.

Still playing his devilish instrument, Pan approached the girl. The Lost Boys drifted apart to let him through so he could plainly see her. His glowing eyes strangely softened. He let his fingers caress the cheek of the sleeping girl. Her hair had turned blond, her skin paler. She seemed slighter but he knew this was an impression for he knew her strength. For a moment he said nothing and then let out the least expected sentence:

"Welcome back, Tink."


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello sweet fellows! I'm back and I bring trouble...! Ready for some revelations?! There you go! Enjoy and tell me what you think of it, and also what you think is going to be said, done, felt and revealed in the next chapters !**

When she woke up in the morning, Rachel felt as though she had spent the entire week drinking vodka. A lot of vodka. Her mouth felt dry and tasted terrible. She sat and passed her hands on her face, trying to shake it up for a bit and failed at brushing her wild hair with her fingers only. They were just too messy, and surprisingly still a bit wet from her bath the night before. She didn't quite remember at what point she had come back to her room but she really didn't mind much.

Rachel yawned, eyes still closed, slowly coming to her senses. The warm rays of the sun were caressing her left arm, peaking through the small window on the wall. The girl stayed still, enjoying the unexpected heat.

This is when she noticed something was up.

She opened her eyes and an intensely bright light burnt her retinas, causing her to close her eyelids in a second. She waited for her eyes to adjust and then, slowly, let the light in. It was weird at first, witnessing daylight again, but she was definitely the one less used to darkness on the whole island, and so she smiled so big she felt her ears rise high on each side of her head. This feeling made her even happier and she was soon to giggle by herself on the undone sheets of her bed. The giggle slowly gained power and from there Rachel burst into laughter. The sun was shining and she probably had something to do with it. Pan would be mad.

She dressed up, and feeling lighter than ever, she jumped down the ladder... to find each and everyone of the Lost Boys wandering about. Most of them walked aimlessly. Some, on the contrary, were sat on the floor, eyeing the sun with disbelief. And there, perched high in his tree, back turned from her, Pan was standing, facing the newly born heat.

As soon as she set foot on the dirt, the boy turned around and gazed at her, sensing her awake by some strange sixth sense he had. But instead of the rage she was expecting to see in his black pupils, all she saw was deep relief. He jumped down the tree and gracefully landed before walking towards her. The closer he got, the bigger he smiled, and before she could move, he took her in his arms and hugged her so tight she had her breath taken away. The pair stayed this way for what seemed like awfully long minutes to Rachel, although it was only seconds to Pan. When he finally let her go, she took a step back, shaky. Pan kept smiling at her like he was living the best day of his life, thanks to her.

"Isn't it wonderful, Tink? Everything is finally going back to normal! I never thought forcing your into your original self would make such changes. I mean, I knew you would wake up confused and maybe hating this place more than before but I guess it was worth it!"

Rachel was astounded.

"I'm sorry?" she said.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to find Ron smiling at her.

"We're all so glad to have you back Rach... Sorry. Tinkerbell. It was kinda long without you here."

One by one, each one of the boys came to greet her, except for Al who apparently had no idea what was going on. Pretty much like her actually. He stood there, frowning at the scene before him, his arms useless by his sides.

"I need explanations." Rachel managed to let out between the fifth and sixth hug. "Intensely detailed explanations."

Pan took her hand in his and simply said: "Follow me."

And they were off, making their way through the dense forest. Rachel remembered this path to be the cave's where Pan had taken her the day before.

"Are we training again today?" she asked. Pan looked at her while continuing his fast walking.

"Something like that. Things have changed since yesterday and you need to fully understand what."

Rachel had not been so confused in her whole life. The only visible change was the fact that the sun was back, and so, the natural cycle of day and night. What part she had played in this, she did not know, but maybe she was about to discover it.

Pan and her entered the dark corridor and quicker than the last time, got to the tree. Pan stopped a few meters from the small lake and looked at her.

"Look at your reflection. But please, whatever you do, don't freak out."

Rachel smirked at him. Things were being really odd. Pan was way too polite for her to peacefully apprehend what she might see in this stupid puddle. But she did take a step closer to the sparkling water. And another, until she kneeled and looked into it.

The weather was not the only thing that had changed overnight: so had she.

The first detail that hit her was her hair colour. She was now light blonde with long flowing hair, that she had shorter and darker before. Her eyes had stayed the same altogether, but maybe were they less round? Her face was also slimmer and a shade paler than she had ever had it. She stayed silent. Had some crazy plastic surgeon operated her while she slept? Was she still asleep and all of this was a dream? What the fuck was going on here ?

She looked over her shoulder to Pan who was staring at her, waiting for her reaction.

"I feel like you are involved with all of these changes." she stated. "I believe I have the right to know why and how?"

Instead of answering her, Pan looked up to the tree and on an impulsiveness of his right foot, flew to the branch hiding the hole. There he waved at her and motioned her to join him. Rachel started climbing the tree for the second time and was also faster than the day before, her feet were more assured for they knew the right path. She felt so much lighter, and as a gentle wind made her hair whirl around her, Rachel felt herself lose balance. However she did not fall, her light body followed the path of the wind, and trying to keep herself steady to avoid spinning, she finally landed next to Pan who reached out for her and brought her back next to him with the force of his arms. Apparently leaving the grasp of the wind was harder than entering it. Rachel decided not to question what had just happened. Things had been out of hand the moment she had set foot on this island, she couldn't keep freaking out at every weird thing that happened to her. But how she wanted to!

Pan and her climbed down the stairs, and once again, Rachel felt as though the tree had its own conscience. Her fingers undulated on the warm and soft wood, almost like a caress. She stopped for a few seconds to let ants make their way through the step she had been about to walk on. When had she become so conscious of all the living things around her? Shaking her head she stepped over it and started walking after Pan again.

When they arrived to the room from before, Pan sat on his chair and looked at her as she made her way through the empty space. This time, Rachel strangely seemed to remember some details about it. She saw a bunch of children fighting each other on the floor, laughing and pretending to eat a feast out of empty bowls and plates. She also saw Pan, dressed with leaves and vines, smaller than he was now, chase after them, a sword in his right hand, and bright eyes filled with joy.

She looked at him and finally noticed his stare. She felt uncomfortable at the idea that he had been watching her all this time.

"Do you remember anything now?" he asked gently.

His voice flew to her ears the same way the wind had taken her before, and this is when she knew. Pan was one with the island and its natural elements. He was one with the wind, one with the flowing water, one with the clouds he drew at will in the sky, one with the stars chanting his name, as she heard them now. She heard the stars singing, and it was the most marvellous song she was ever given to hear.

Uneasy, she answered: "I don't know what I remember, Pan. I don't even know why you brought me here, and what happened before I went back to my room last night."

He was silent for a moment, probably thinking of what he could tell her, or how he was about to drop the news without having her all scared.

"Let's begin with the beginning, shall we?" he started.

"Seems like a fair deal to me."

He nodded and began talking.

"I have never been too good at storytelling I must admit. But since I'm the only one who can tell you everything there is to know, I suppose I'll have to make an effort." he slightly giggled. "Let's put it this way: although I tend to forget it, I often remember from my dreams that I'm originally from your world. From a place called London. I don't recall everything about it, but I know I had parents talking big to me when I was not older than three years old. They said they had the highest hopes for my future, that I'd become someone important, that I'd own so many suits I could wear a different one each day of the month. Things like that. Anyway, eventually, at the age of ten or so, I ran off and ended up in a public park of some sort. It was raining that night and I hadn't brought an umbrella with me so I quickly ended up soaked to the bones. I found a comfortable place and fell asleep almost immediately. I had spent the day hiding from my neighbours and police agents. They were all looking for me but I couldn't let myself get caught and so I was exhausted.

Somewhat in the middle of the night I felt someone touch me and I got scared they had found me. But instead of the adult I thought I'd see, there was a girl my age with a wide smile on her face. I must say up to this day I still haven't seen such a beautiful smile on somebody else's face. Like me she was all wet, but it didn't seem to bother her much. She started talking, and she seemed so genuinely happy to speak to someone that I listened to her carefully, in deep silence. She had a tinkling voice, and the story she was telling me was so amazing that I couldn't believe my ears. She told me she had ran off from her queen and that what she was doing was against all the orders she had been given but that she did not care because she knew she was doing the right thing. When I asked her what the problem was, she told me about her far away island and the terrible curse it was under. Apparently, some evil force had settled there some time ago and had been messing things up, messing with people's minds once in a while and forcing them to fight to death with one another. Tinkerbell, as she introduced herself, wanted to do something about it. Something serious, unlike her queen who didn't seem to understand much of what was going on, according to her."

"Wait a second." Rachel stopped him. "What does all of this have to do with me."

"Let me finish, you'll understand everything when I'm done I promise." he swore. "Where was I? Oh right, sorry. Before I knew it, I asked if there was anything I could do to help and surprisingly, she said yes! That night, I flew for the first time. That night, Tinkerbell, or should I say you, brought me to Neverland. Queen..."

"...Hilda?" Rachel guessed to Pan's surprise, trying to forget the fact that she might have played a part so important in his life, and in the island's.

"How do you..." Pan was astonished. "Oh. The Mermaids of course. Obviously they'd talk to you. I haven't seen them for way too long. I even thought they were extinct... It's good they're not. So, as I was saying, you brought me to Neverland after we made a deal. You would take me there so no one would ever find me and I'd do all I could to save the island and its people. Once we agreed on the terms, we were off, flying behind the moon and up to the stars. We flew for what seemed like days to me, through many worlds and universes I could not even remember after laying eyes on them. And then, we reached Neverland. But we soon realised something terrible had happened while you were gone. No one was around anymore. The entire island was empty of fairies. You panicked and brought me here, to this room, so you could think. The magic of the tree gave you strength, that's what you told me anyway, and when we went out, we looked for the Piccaninny tribe. The bloodthirsty people of this tribe were usually to be avoided at all times but you couldn't care less, their princess Tiger Lily was one of your best friends since forever, and so the tribe was also devoted to you. Once we got there, we found the fairies safe and sound although absolutely traumatised by whatever they had lived. Queen Hilda and her counsellor, a ginger witch, told us _it_ had come and killed many. When I asked what _it_ was referring to, the queen took me back here, just the two of us." Pan let out a laugh. "I swear I was beginning to have enough with all the comes and goes. She told me to submerge myself in the enchanted water, and that by doing so, I would be linked to the island and be able to defeat it. I knew she was taking a risk by entrusting me, a ten-year-old she had just met, with such important powers. I suppose she saw something in me. I never really had an answer from her about it.

I won't tell you what it felt like to be underwater in this lake because it is indescribable. When I got out of it, I had gained all of the powers a fairy was born with, but there was more to it. I could hear the island's will, and every living, every single inert thing that belonged to it. I still can. I forever will. From simple human Peter, I became Pan, with the powers you know."

Pan fell silent for a long moment and Rachel seized the opportunity to ask the question that was burning her tongue.

"Why can't we call you Peter, like in the stories?"

Pan looked at her like she was a simpleton.

"Do I look like the simpleminded child that I once was? Do I look like the kid that once brought children here to have fun because he felt lonely? I was Peter, like I said, but this time is over. And all of it because of a certain family you certainly have heard of: the Darlings."

 **Dannnnnngggg surprise !**


End file.
